Students Plan Archaeology Project

April 21, 1985|Sunday Call-Chronicle

Most young people today would say "to dig it" is dated phraseology. But 70 Bethlehem Area School District youngsters are taking that phrase literally.

This week, as part of an archaeological project, they will dig for artifacts at the site of an old farmhouse. Students in the seventh-grade gifted program are working on the project under the direction of Craig Zieger, John Waidner and Richard Lund, the district's middle-school teachers of the gifted. Zieger heads the team.

The project began when the three attended a conference in 1983. "It was at this conference that we learned about an archaeological dig being conducted with the gifted students in Bucks County. Intermediate Unit 22 coordinated the dig," said Zieger.

"We had the opportunity to visit the coordinators and the site on Election Day 1984. We were so impressed with the program that we decided to give it a try with our Grade 7 gifted students," he explained.

According to information provided to parents of participants in the Bethlehem Area School District, the program is to "introduce students to a variety of educational pursuits outside the regular classroom. History, geography, economics, culture and science will all be examined at the archaeological site."

To assist with the project, a $300 mini grant from the district was obtained. It is being used to purchase equipment, Zieger said.

Zieger remarked they were lucky in locating a site for the dig. "John Waidner remembered an old farmhouse that once stood behind East Hills Middle School."

The site is on district property south of Oakland Road behind the school. It lies directly west of the road that divides Freedom High School's rear parking lot and the access area to the middle school.

"We know for sure the house existed in 1874." Zieger said. "It appears on a map that Jack Waidner has from that year."

The map identifies the area as the "Fogel property," Zieger said, adding the owner was Enoch Fogel.

Although the teachers can find no clear proof, evidence suggests the house was built around 1854. Zieger said they have determined this from the Fogel wills and other documents at the Northampton County Courthouse, but they "could not find that (an exact date) anywhere," Zieger said. "Tax records would have shown that, but we checked at the courthouse and they were not available."

The property is on the line between Bethlehem and Bethlehem Township, so maps tended to be somewhat incomplete, as each municipality apparently allocated the detailed record-keeping to the other, Zieger said.

The property eventually was bought by the school district and rented out until the early 1970s.

Zieger said someone told him the last occupant of the house was a man named Stoller, who was allowed to live there until his death. Zieger explained several other people already had told him the "guy who lived there was a junk collector" and the house was "filled with all kinds of things."

Based on this information and the fact that one of the farmhouse's foundation walls has already been uncovered by Zieger and Lund, the teachers are very optimistic the students will be able to uncover several artifacts this year.

The entire archaeological project has been divided into three sections.

The first, researching archaeological concepts and techniques, has been under way for about four weeks. Classroom time was been used to develop research, prepare materials and learn the processes involved in archaeology.

In the second phase, which involves actual work at the site, is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, with Friday as a rain date. Students will work in groups of four or five. Each student will have a specific job on the team.

An additional week or two, "depending on what we find," will be used to classify and record data, said Zieger.

Students and teachers are excited about the project, said Zieger. "We hope to make it a permanent part of the seventh-grade gifted seminar curriculum," he said, noting the colonial crafts program of Historic Bethlehem Inc., scheduled for May 14 and 15 this year, is part of the curriculum for the district's eight-grade gifted students.

To complete the middle school package, the teachers hope to start a program soon for the sixth-grade gifted students, he added.